iRobot Roomba 560 Vacuum

For time-strapped moms, iRobot's Roomba 560 is a technological masterpiece. Equipped with infrared sensors, the vac will canvass floors, get into corners, and even clean under beds — all while you're running errands or relaxing. You can set a timer so the Roomba automatically starts working on, say, Mondays and Thursdays at 11:15 a.m. It can move between rooms without your help, and even does its own quality control (if you place the Virtual Wall Lighthouse unit in a doorway, the device will not let the robot cross into the next space until it has vacuumed the area it started in). While the Roomba doesn't deep clean, it picked up virtually every speck we dropped on floors; all it asks is that you empty its dust tray after two or three outings. iRobot Roomba 560; 800-727-9077, irobot.com.